I recently had the privilege of seeing Colton Dixon in concert at a high school auditorium in Defuniak Springs Florida. Having seen him twice before (once at Winter Jam in 2014 and then at a solo concert in June of the same year), I was excited to see him again, especially since I loved the new sounds off of Colton's new album, Anchor. For the most part, the show exceeded my expectations, with just a few small issues in an otherwise great concert.

The concert was put on by The Matrix Community Outreach Center for "Back to School," and this was their biggest event so far. The crowd of 400-plus was treated to a great show. Colton started off with the upbeat "Our Time is Now," and immediately followed up with "Walk on the Waves" before introducing himself and taking a moment to present his new fiancé, as well as tell the romantic proposal story which took place at Disney World just the day before. He then continued the show with a song off his first album, "Never Gone," before singing "Echo" which was well done, especially when he passed the mic back and forth by his mouth while singing the word echo. The show calmed down for "Rise" as he played his piano for the entirety of the song. "Anchor" was next and then Colton performed "More of You," the first single off of his latest album. "Dare to Believe" was played before Colton did a short testimony with the ever popular Philippians 4:13, "I can do all things through Christ who strengthens me," and he emphasized the "ALL" part of the verse.

The next part of the show was by far my favorite. One of the guitarists, Jared Martin, did an amazing guitar solo before the heaviest (and my favorite) song of the night, "Loud and Clear." The compressed air that blasted during the 2 high riffs immediately following the words " …simple truths… " added something special to that performance. "Limitless" and "Through All of It" preceded his breakout single "You Are," which was beautifully done by Dixon, with a spotlight on him singing while playing piano. He and the rest of the band left the stage, allowing the crowd to sing the last verse in unison. Then the 2-song encore came, with "Back to Life" played first, and then Colton introduced all of his band members before playing the last song of the night, "In and Out of Time."

The venue itself was impressive for the event, allowing plenty of room for the audience to enjoy the show without feeling too vacant. The audience members directly in front of the stage, were mostly young, and remained energetic throughout the show. There was little echoing in the building, with sound absorbing carpet on the walls aiding in providing a great sound. The production was well done, with appropriate lighting for each song and the aforementioned compressed air that was used sparingly but effectively. There were only a few issues that stood out to me. The limited testimony done by Colton Dixon seemed too short for the type of music he does. Also, regarding the song order, "Loud and Clear" could've been played last, which would have made a more memorable final song. Lastly, I found it odd that he introduced his band members individually before the final song. I believe a more appropriate time would have been during his welcome.

Overall, the concert was a memorable one. Colton Dixon put on an amazing show in a great venue, the crowd was energetic, and the production was impressive. The small issues that I found were overshadowed by Colton and his band's stage presence, energy, and overall performance. I look forward to seeing him in the future and recommend his concert to anyone wanting to see a great pop rock show.